JOHN GRUNDY, JP
Chairman, Hindley Local Board 1887 – 1892
Chairman, Abram Local Board
b 3 Aug 1840 Bapt 13 Sept 1840, St Mary the Virgin, Leigh
Parents: Abraham Grundy (Weaver) and Esther, nee Holcroft
m Unmarried
Children: None
d 20 Sept 1894, Rose Hill, Hindley, aged 54, Managing Director, Hindley Field Collieries
Buried Wigan Cemetery, 22 Sept 1894, Plot C278, C of E
John Grundy was born on 3rd Aug 1840 in Bedford, West Leigh, the fourth child of Abraham and Esther Grundy.
Of Jewish origins, Abraham started life as a weaver but by the time their fifth child was born in 1843, he was recorded as a bookkeeper; in the 1851 census he was a cotton spinners clerk and by 1861 a colliery viewer (the responsible manager of a colliery, in charge of all underground and generally all surface arrangements, living in Darlington St, Wigan. By the 1871 census, Abraham was a mining engineer, living at Rose Hill, Close Lane Hindley.
The first we know of John’s career is from the 1861 census, when he was living in South Toxteth, working as a flour dealer’s assistant. By 1871 he lived at Rose Hill, Hindley with his parents and worked as a bookkeeper. This was most likely at Hindley Field Collieries in which company, according to The Comet in 1891, his father Abraham had ‘an interest’ which John went on to inherit.
John became manager of Hindley Field Collieries and was later appointed managing director when it became a limited liability company. By the time of the 1881 census John is described as a coal mine owner of Rose Hill Cottage, whilst in the 1891 census he is described as a mine/colliery inspector.
The Comet article described John as ‘an admirable master’, a genial man who would take every opportunity to benefit the working people and who was greatly respected by the working men of Hindley and Abram.
Alongside his work, John was also involved in the local community. He was an active member of both Abram and Hindley Local Boards and served as the Chairman for both townships. For many years he was also the Abram representative on the Wigan Board of Guardians, and was appointed a Justice of the Peace for the county in 1893.
During his years in office, John was reported as taking a particular interest in the health and welfare of the people of both Hindley and Abram, most notably in regard to sanitation.
John suffered indifferent health and died on 20th Sept 1894, aged 54.
Sources : Ancestry ; Lancashire Online Parish Clerks ; Wigan Observer ; The Comet ;
Joan Unsworth